Improvement in indexes



ANDREW J. JONES, OF CINCINNATI,

PATENT OFFICE.

OHIO, ASSIGNOR OF ONE-HALF HIS RIGHT TO HENRY H. TINKER, OF SAME PLACE.

IMPROVEMENT IN INDEXES.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 160,437, dated March 2, 1875; application filed February 13, 1875.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, ANDREW J. J oNEs, of Cincinnati, Hamilton county, Ohio, have invented a new and useful Indexed Book, of which the following is a specification:

My invention is especially designed as an improvement on such voluminous indexes as are necessary in records of courts, but is also applicable to other public and private books, and all other records; and has for its object the enabling of any person seeking reference to such books or making record therein to find the name or page sought in the most expeditious manner. This object I accomplish as follows: My indexed book has, in the first place, the customary series of notched alphabetical index-leaves for family names, and, so

far,ma v be substantially the same as any common ledger-index, the alphabetical notched margin being precisely in its usual place, to wit, in the front or opening edge of the leaves.

My improvement consists in the provision, to theleft of each of these primary index-leaves, of a group or series of secondaryleaves,\vhich has one or more edges, similarly notched and indexed to the primary ones, the initials havin g reference to the given names inscribed upon their pages, so that the seeker or recorder,

having opened the book at the family initial in the usual way, and seeing a similar subordinate group of initials to his left hand, has but to open the group at the proper initial letter of the given name to find the name sought.

Figure 1 is a perspective view of a book provided with my improved index, the book being opened at that part which is provided for the reception of the names of incorporations,firmnames, and miscellaneous matter only. Fig. 2 is another perspective view, showing the book open, so as to expose individual names.

The right-hand edge or margin of the leaves of the book is notched and indexed a, which index is arranged in the same alphabetical manner as the index of an ordinary ledger, but in my book several leaves are interposed to the left of the various consecutive letters, as, for example, to the left of A, and between A and B, and'between B and O, &c. The precise number of leaves that intervene between the respective letters will vary according to the use the book is to be put to; and if it is designed to contain the names of comparatively few individuals, three or four interposed leaves in each secondary group will suffice, but if the book is to be adapted as a record for the names of all the tax-payers of a large city, or of other municipal, county, or State affairs, a greater number of leaves may be provided up to one for each letter, or as many for each letter as may be desired. The object of these interposed leaves is to offer an opportunity for arrang ing another notched alphabetical index, I), as shown, at the lower edge or margin of the left of the book. Of these two distinct sets of alphabetical indexes to b the first one is to indicate the places of the initials of family names, while the scoondaryindex designates the place of the given names.

This description of the improvement renders the use of my book apparent, and it is obvious that the person using the book will see at a glance the purpose of the subordinate index, and will reach the desired name in a small fraction of the time consumed under the common system.

To show the facility with which a name can be found, I will suppose the book closed and the name of Isaac Macbeth, or any other name having same initials, to be recorded or searched for. The person using the book has only to cast the eye upon the letter M, (which, it will be observed, is printed on the last sheet that is devoted to that letter of the alphabet,) and open the book at this place. As soon as the book is thus opened he sees at the bottom of the left-hand pages the other index b, and he accordingly runs his left-hand thumb along the notched pages until he comes to that sheet having the letter I printed upon it, at which place he opens the book again and finds the name of Isaac Macbeth displayed before him, and opposite the name the number of the page of the book in which Macbeths account rec- 0rd, 850., is kept, as seen in Fig. 2.

From the above description it will be seen that any individuals name can be found by simply opening the indexed portion of the book in two places, which is the work of a few moments only.

If, now, while the book is open, as represented in Fig.'2, it be desired to refer to the name of an individual whose initials are R.M., it will not be necessary to turn back to M and then forward to R, but the person using the book merely looks at the supplementary index 0 at the top of the right-hand pages, runs his finger along said notched alphabetical index until he reaches R, and then opens the book at the sheet having that character upon it, and the desired name is revealed at a glance.

In order to afford room in the book for registering incorporations, firmnames, and miscellaneous matter separate, I provide each subordinate group with one or more pages for such records. They are the last pages of each group, and all of such pages which are thrown to the left are cut off sufficiently at the bottom to expose the index I), as seen in Fig. 1. This illustration shows the place for recording the names of incorporations, &c., whose initial letter is L, and also shows the index for all given names for said letter, it being understood that each letter of the alphabet has a precisely similar auxiliary index for given names. Hence it follows that, should a firm or incorporation name be sought-as, for example, Logan Iron (Jo.- it will be found displayed either on the page of the primary initial or on one of the additional pages at the end of the group.

By referring to Fig. 2 it will be noticed that two pages are employed for the initials I, J, K, and L of the given names of individuals whose surnames are indicated by the letter M, but I do not propose to confine myself to this arrangement, as it is evident that a less or greater number of pages can be secured for each initial letter.

In some cases one page may be devoted to the single initial of a given name, or a numbe of pages for a single initial, this arrangement to be varied throughout the book to suit circumstances, it being apparent that much more space will be required for the letter J for example, than for X, Y, and Z combined.

Instead of locating the given-name index I) at the bottom of the left-hand sheets, it may be arranged vertically along the edges of said pages, obversely to the primary index, as shown in the diagram, Fig. 2.

If desired, projecting tags, marked with the proper initials, may accompany the notches on their obverse side, or may wholly replace them on one or more of the notched edges.

1 claim as new and of my invention- An indexed book, each of whose leaves for family names is accompanied by a secondary group or series of notched and initialed leaves for Christian names of individuals, said secondary group being capable of being read forward and backward, and separate space for incorporations, firm-names, and miscellaneous matter, substantially as and for the purpose designated.

In testimony of which invention I hereunto set my hand.

ANDREW J. JONES. Attest:

GEO. H. KNIGHT, JAMES H. LAYMAN. 

